Telecom department to make re-verification of mobile nos with Aadhaar easier

Telecom department to make re-verification of mobile nos with Aadhaar easier

UIDAI has already told consumers on Twitter that they can verify their mobile numbers through a one-time passcode received on their mobile numbers.

New Delhi: The telecom department expects to finalise steps within a week to make it easier for consumers to re-verify their mobile numbers through Aadhaar without visiting telco retail outlets.

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The Department of Telecommunications has held a series of meetings on the issue – the latest one on Friday – where carriers were asked for proposals on the steps that consumers need to follow and these have been shared with the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI).

“The process has been suggested to UIDAI and it will now meet with the telecom department to finalise it,” a senior official at the department said, adding that representatives of carriers had met DoT officials as well. “The plan is to approve the process within this week,” the official added.

A senior executive at a leading carrier said the government wants to implement the process quickly. UIDAI has already told consumers on Twitter that they can verify their mobile numbers through a one-time passcode received on their mobile numbers registered with Aadhaar from December 1.

“It may take us a few days to put the process in place but to make sure it is tested and error-free can take a couple of weeks,” he said.
Among the suggestions made by telcos, subscribers will send their Aadhaar and mobile details to a designated number set up for verification. The telco will validate the information with UIDAI and complete the re-verification. For consumers who may be incapacitated or those who cannot use the one-time passcode, telcos have proposed a charge of Rs 200 for every home visit, said a senior executive aware of the proposals.

The DoT allowed telcos last month to re-verify mobile phone numbers through three systems – one-time passcode through SMS, interactive voice response system and through the telcos’ mobile apps – to ease the process of re-verification so that consumers need not queue up at retail stores or face inconvenience. The department also allowed re-verification through iris-based biometric devices and at the doorsteps of consumers unable to use pass codes, fingerprint authentication or are incapacitated and cannot go to retail stores.

The Supreme Court pulled up banks and mobile phone companies last week for creating panic by sending customers messages that their accounts will be deactivated if they are not linked to Aadhaar even when a Constitution bench is yet to decide on the validity of the 12-digit identity number.

The Centre said all subscribers had to link their mobile phone numbers with Aadhaar by February 6, 2018, and added that the SC had approved the norm for mandatory Aadhaar-mobile phone linkage.